1. Technical Field
An apparatus for dispensing a plurality of flowable materials, such as colorants for paint, dye, caulking or grout or components of cosmetics, and to a method of compounding flowable substances are disclosed.
2. Background of the Related Art
A prior art apparatus of this type is disclosed in U.S. patent application 2003/0230355. This document pertains to an interactive cosmetic body powder selection system having a point of sale dispenser. The system includes a cosmetic powder dispenser that contains a plurality of different shades, tints or hues of colors or pigments, which can be dispensed in pre-selected proportions to create a custom color selection. A user-interactive system is provided at a point-of-sale for allowing a user to choose or dispense a color, effect, or both. Information about the selection is employed for dispensing the appropriate proportions of ingredients. Preferably the ingredients are dispensed manually into a powder canister having an integrated brush in fluid communication with the canister. In another embodiment, the system is automated.
U.S. Pat. No.4,959,947 relates to an apparatus for the production and packaging of a compound mixture, in which extremely accurate and rapid weighing-out, proportioning and packaging of individual components are achieved, is provided. For this, filling stations (4 to 6) are equipped with combined discharge, weighing and transfer devices (22), which allow single-component treatment. In colunm 4, lines 25 to 32 it is stated that “The first type of filling station 4 (individual vessels 1 to 4) illustrated in FIG. 1 has a discharge device 23 which is composed of two electronically controlled worm conveyors 24 arranged above one another and of an electronically controlled shutoff valve 25. The double worm conveyor serves for matching the proportioning capacity to the material to be conveyed or to the amount to be weighed out from the feed vessel 7.”
German Utility Model 299 24 013 relates to a metering device for a powder, such as aluminum powder for making cellular concrete, which comprises a relatively large screw for generating a relatively large mass flow and a relatively small screw, which receives material from the relatively large screw.
An apparatus for and method of relatively accurately and relatively quickly dispensing different amounts of flowable materials such as powders, slurries and liquids are disclosed.
In an embodiment, the said amounts vary over a wide range.
The disclosed apparatus is of a relatively robust construction.